Raven Software, one of the support studios for Call of Duty and unionized staff, has filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board, stating that Activision and Microsoft are stalling contract negotiations.
As reported by GameFile, Raven Software claims that Activision and Microsoft are guilty of “Refusal to Bargain / Bad Faith Bargaining”. Indeed, the president of the CWA Claude Cummings Jr. stated:
“After Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, our members were optimistic about quickly attaining a first contract at Raven Software. Unfortunately, that has not happened. We urge Microsoft to address the concerns raised in the complaint of unfair labour practices and to prioritize reaching a fair agreement.”
A spokesperson for Microsoft told GameFile:
“We are committed to negotiating in good faith.”
It is worth noting that Activision Blizzard officially recognized the union in 2022, which was founded by a group of QA workers. The Game Workers Alliance is the first union formed by a major U.S. video game company.